Rotary motion translating means for use with linearly moving handles



April 27 1965 G. H. FARNswoRTH ON TRANSLATING MEANS F ROTARY MOTI OR USEWITH LINEARLY MOVING HANDLES 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed 00T.. 19, 1962 e IlH L E Q\\\ WM V ll w. rw www... m m A x lllbunun? la April 27, 1965 G H.FARNswoR'rH 3,180,964

ROTARY MOTION'TRANSLATING MEANS FOR USE WITH LINEARLY MOVING HANDLESFiled OCT.. 19, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR. 6550666 A./CAeA/J'h/a/erg ROTARY MOTION'TRANSLATING MEANS FOR USE WITH LINEARLYMOVING HANDLES Filed 00T.. 19, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 lUnited StatesPatent O I" This invention relates to motion translating means and `moreparticularly to 'a device for translating rotary motion to linear motionand is especially adaptable for use in circuit breaker assemblies Whereit is desired to employ an exteriorally mounted rotary operating handlefor operating the switch of an interior mounted circuit breakerassembly. v

In many circuit breaker applications it is desirable to l mount thecircuit breakers within cubicles or other suitable enclosures so thatthe circuit breaker and its associated source and load conductors Withwhich it is connected are completelyenclosed, thereby protectingoperators, maintenance men and others from the live circuits containedWithin the enclosure. It is quite frequently necessary, however, tomanually operate the circuit breaker to the open position forinspection, maintenance, and other purposes andalso to reset and closethe circuitbreaker which has tripped automatically, after the faultcondition has been cleared and the circuit is placed in readiness fornormal routine operation. Such manual manipulation ofthe circuit breakerdoes not require the opening of the cubicle or enclosure and' for thisreason it is therefore desirable to provideV an exteriorally mountedoperating handle, en abling manual manipulation of the interiorallymounted circuit breaker without'opening the enclosure door. The priorart provides such motion translating devices for coupling the rotarymotion of an exteriorally mounted rotary operating handle to the circuitbreaker handle of an interiorally mounted circuit breaker, one typicalassembly being set forth in U.S. Patent No. 2,741,684 entitled OperatingHandle Adapter issued April 10, 1956, to l. C. Brumiield and assigned,to the assignee of the instant invention. Since circuit breakersoperated by motion translation devices of this general type aresubjected to repeated usage, it is important to provide translationalapparatus adapted for preservation of the circuit breaker elements whichare operated under control of the translation apparatus. None of theprior art devices have such an advantageous arrangement.

The device of the `instant invention, in addition to providing resilientcushioning means for the protection of the circuit breaker` operatinghandle, further provides a is further provided VVWith two separatemeansengageable` with the operating handle vto provide leverage sufficient toreadily operate the exteriorally mounted operating arm With a minimumoperating force being required.

The translational apparatus ofthe instant ,invention isv l ldihdPatented Apr. 27, iii

ice

mounting plate is adapted to be rigidly secured to any standard circuitbreaker assembly such as, for example, a molded case type circuitbreaker assembly which is provided with a manual operating handle.V Theoperating plate is provided with a suitable opening for receiving theprojecting handle of the circuit breaker. The operating lever member isa substantially L-shaped member which is pivotally mounted at the end ofone arm ofthe L-shaped configuration by suitable pivoting means which issecured to the stationary mounting plate. A projection is provided onthe operating lever at the knee of the L-shaped configuration, whichprojection is provided with a tapered portion for engagement withexteriorally mounted operating handle of any standard type having thecapability of being rotatably mounted for imparting rotation of movementto the translational motion device operating lever. The remaining arm ofthe L-shaped member is provided with a projecting pin which cooperateswith an elongated slot provided in the reciprocally mounted operatingplate, so as to impart movement to the operating plate upon rotation ofthe rotary mounted operating lever. The operating lever is furtherprovided with a tapered opening which opening is substantiallyconcentric with the operating lever pivoting point and which opening isadapted for receiving a projecting pivot pin extending from the rotarymounted exterior operating handle. The operating lever V.is providedwith a key shaped projection cooperative with an opening ofsubstantially the same coniiguration in the mounting plate so as tooperatively link the operating lever to the mounting plate Without thenecessity for additional fastening means.

The mounting plate is so formed as to provide suitable slots for guidingthe reciprocally mounted operating plate, thereby confining theoperating plate so that it Will experience only linear motion. A shockabsorbing arrangement is provided for absorbing any excessive forcesexerted upon the circuit breaker operating handle by the operating platein order to prevent breakage or like damage to the circuit breakerhandle. The cushioning mechanism is comprised ofV a bumper arrangementwhich is slidably engaged by the plate so that the bumper surface abutsone side of the Vcircuit; breaker operating handle. Biasing means arepositioned between the bumper surface and the koperating plate causingthe bumper to be biased in the direction towards the circuit breakeroperating handle. The arrangement is such that in the opening operation,if a ,greater force than is necessary to open the breaker is exertedupon the translational assembly operating lever,

any excess forces which might be imparted to the circuit breakeroperating handle are absorbed by the shock absorbing means sothatV nosevere strain is imposed upon the circuit breaker handle. 'The shockabsorbing means is adapted,V however, to impart substantially all theforce exerted upon it by the operating plate to the circuit breakeroperating handle, except for the occasion when the rotaryoperatingrhandle, which is manipulated to move the cir-l cuit breaker tothe off position, it is moved to a point beyond whichit is knecessaryfor a normal circuit-breaker closure operation.V The biasing member forthe shock absorber assembly further acts to maintain the motion Itranslation apparatus as .a unied assembly bypreventing either wilful or.accidental dismantling of the assembly,

` in great detail.

thereby providing a motion translation assembly requiring no separatefastening means whatsoever.

it is therefore one object of this invention to provide a motiontranslation apparatus having a novel arrangement for imparting linearmotion to a circuit breaker handle under control of a rotary operatinghandle.

Another object of this invention is to provide a motion translationassembly for translating rotary motion to linear motion which is sodesigned as to provide a unique operating lever assembly tosubstantially reduce the driving forces required by the motiontranslation assembly.

Another object of this invention is to provide a motion translationassembly for converting rotary motion to linear motion for driving acircuit breaker manual operating handle which is so designed as toprovide a novel shock absorbing assembly, thereby avoiding breakage ofthe circuit breaker manual operating handle.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a motiontranslation assembly for use with circuit breaker operating handles andthe like, whose elements are so designed as to cooperate in a uniquemanner, thereby removing the need for providing any additional facetingmeans whatsoever.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a motiontranslation apparatus for circuit breaker operating handles and thelike, having a unique operating lever arrangement which is so adapted asto engage an input rotary operated handle at two separate points ofengagement, thereby substantially reducing the drive forces needed foroperating the motion translation assembly.

These and other objects will become apparent when reading theaccompanying description and drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the motion translation assemblydesigned according to the principles of the instant invention whichassembly is shown in its environment with a circuit breaker assembly.

FIGURES 2a, 2b and 2c are top, side and end plan views of the operatinglever which forms part of the motion translation assembly shown inFIGURE 1.

FIGURES 3a, 3b and 3c are top, side and end plan views respectively, ofthe motion translation device of FIGURE 1.

Referring now to the drawings and most particularly to FIGURE l, themotion translation device 100 of the instant invention is comprised of astationary mounting plate 101, having a substantially fiat centralportion 102 having arms 103 and 104 extending downwardly from thecentral portion 102. Arms 103 and 104 are bent away from one another toform fianges 103a and 104a respectively. Flange 103a is provided withsuitable apertures 105 and 106 for receiving fastening members 107 and108, respectively, while flange 104@ is provided with an aperture 109for receiving fastening member 110.

As shown in FIGURE 1, mounting plate 102 is secured by fastening means108, 107 and 110 to a circuit breaker 111 of the molded casing type,which circuit breaker is provided with a manually operable handle member112 projecting upward from a position substantially above the breakertop surface 111a. Molded case breaker 111, as shown in FIGURE 1 is athree pole circuit breaker having load terminals, such as, for example,the three load terminals 113 which are positioned at the left and righthand ends respectively, of the breaker 111 for receiving and securingsource and load conductors of the circuit to be protected to the circuitbreaker 111.

It is not necessary for purposes of understanding the instant inventionthat the circuit breaker 111 be described It need only be understoodthat the circuit breaker 111 is providedwith a manually operable handle112 which experiences substantially linear motion relative to the topsurface 111e of breaker 111, which linear motion occurs in thedirections shown by arrows 114 and 115 shown in FIGURE l. It shouldfurther be understood that the motion translation assembly 100 of theinstant invention may be used advantageously with circuit breakers ofgreater or lesser poles and of various designs which departsubstantially from the circuit breaker shown in FIGURE 1, the onlyrequirement being that the circuit breaker to be operated by the motiontranslation assembly be provided with an operating handle whichexperiences substantially linear motion similar to that experienced bythe circuit breaker 111 shown in FIGURE 1 herein.

The stationary mounting plate 102 is further provided with upwardlyextending projections 116 and 118 for receiving the motion translationassembly operating plate 120 in a manner to be more fully described. Theprojection 116 is provided with a notched portion 117 while theprojection 118 is provided with an irregularly shaped elongated slot119, such that the notch 117 and slot 119 cooperate together with thesubstantially straight edge 121 of stationary plate 102 so as to guideoperating plate 120 and position it relative to stationary mountingplate 102, in order to limit movement of the operating plate 120 to thelinear direction shown by arrows 114 and 115, of FIGURE 1. Operatingplate 120 is provided with a substantially rectangularly shaped notch122 for receipt of the breaker operating handle 112 and the motiontranslation shock absorbing assembly, to be more fully described.

'Operating plate 120 is further provided with an elongated slot 123 (seeFIGURE 3a) for receipt of the operating lever drive pin, in order toimpart the linear motion to the operating plate 120 in a manner to bemore fully described.

Motion translation assembly 100 is further provided with an operatinglever 130 which lever 130 is substantially L-shaped, the under side 132of the lever arm 131 is provided with a substantially circular shapedprojection 133, having its upper end integral with the under side 132 oflever 130, and having its lower end integral with a substantiallyelongated rectangular rib 134, which is integral with the lower end ofthe circular projection 133. Mounting plate 102 is provided with asubstantially circular opening 124 (see FIGURE 3a) having oppositelydirectly notched portions 125 and 126 extending therefrom, opening 124and notches 125 and 126 being shown by the phantom line of FIGURE 3a.These cooperating configurations 124-126 act so as to cause the circularprojection 133 on operating lever 130 to act as the pivot means foroperating lever within the opening 124. The joining of the operatinglever 130 and the mounting plate 102 is made by aligning operating lever130 such that the elongated rib 134 (FIGURES Ztl-2c) is positionedimmediately above and substantially in alignment with the notches 125and 126 of the mounting plate 102. In this position the operating lever130 is then moved downward so that the elongated rib 134 passes throughthe opening in mounting plate 102 until the under side 132 of operatinglever 130 rests against the upper surface of mounting plate 102.

The under side 132 of arm 135 of the operating lever 130 is providedwith a pin 136 which is inserted through an aperture 137 provided ina-rm 135, which arrangement can best be seen in FIGURES 2a and 2b. Pin136 acts as a driving pin `for operating plate 120 and cooperates withoperating plate 120, such that the downwardly projecting portion ofdriving pin 136 is adapted to be received by the elongated slot 123provided in operating plate 120. This linkage is affected by slidingoperating plate 120 in either the direction shown by arrow 114 or byarrow 115, FIGURE 1, such that the elongated slot 123 is immediatelybeneath the driving pin 136 at the moment that the projecting rib 134 isbeing inserted into the opening 124-126 of mounting plate 102. Thus asprojecting rib 134 is inserted into the opening 124-*126, the drivingpin 136 is simultaneously therewith inserted into the elongated slot 123of opening plate 120. With this arrangement, the operating lever 130 isthen adapted to rotate in either the clockwise or counterclockwisedirections,

as shown by arrows 140 and 141 in FIGURE 3a while the operating plate121i under control of rotation of operating lever 13G) moves in thedirection shown by arrows 1412 and 143 respectively, as shown in 3a.

Operatinglever 131) is further provided with a suitable extended shaft135a having a head 13S. The upper end `of shaft 135a is provided with ahead 138 having a tapered, or conical portion 139 for engagement with asuitable opening (not shown) in the rotary operating handle for rotatingthe operating lever 130 'm a manner to `be more fully described. Theupper surface 1de or arm 145 is provided with an opening 146 whichVtapers inwardly and downwardly trom surface 144 for receipt of a notaryhandle projecting pin (not shown) in order to facilitate the rotationalmotion imparted to the operating lever 13@ by means of the operatinghandle (not shown). The operating handle which may be employed with themotion translation assembly 1191i of the instant invention is set forthin copending U.S. application 220,- 356 entitled Universal UnitaryHandle For Switches, filed August 30, 1962, by F. W.` Kussy et al., andassigned to the -assignee of the instant invention. Since a detaileddescription ofthe operating handle set forth in the above mentionedoopending application is not necessary for the understanding of theinstant invention, the description of the operating handle. set forththerein is incorporated herein by reference thereto. It is sutlicientfor purposes ot understanding the instant'invention to know that theoperating handle set forth therein is provided with a suitable openingfor receiving the head member 13d of d a bumper member 161 and a biasedmember 162. The bumper 161 is provided with upper and lower elongatedportions 163 and 164, (note especially FIGURES l andV 3b), whichportions 163 and 164 substantially form the Varms of a substantiallyU-shaped bumper member 161,

having a yoke portion 165 provided with shoulders 166 and 167 which abutthe end 168 of biasing member or spring 162. The other end of biasingmember 162 abuts 'the edge 170 of operating plate 12h. Biasing member orspring 162 is thereby adapted to urge the bumper member 161 in thedirection shown by arrow 115, relative tothe yoperating plate 121).Movement of bumper 161v in the direction shown by arrow 115 is limitedby means of the iiange 163:1 provided at the end of arm 16.3 which abutsthe edge 120e of operating plate 1241 to prevent further movement ofbumper 163 in a direction shown by arrow 115, relative tothe operatingplate 12S.

'The operationof the motion translation assembly 1li@ is as follows:

operating lever 130 and is further provided with a pro- `jecting pin(about which the rotary handle pivots) which is insertable into thetapered openingv 146 of operating lever 1.3i). The purpose of thetapered portion 139 of head 138 and the tapered aperture 146 in arm 145is to facilitate the engagement of the operating lever 130 by theexteriorally mounted operating handle (not shown).

A typical environment for the motion translation assembly as shown inFIGURE l is a suitable enclosure or cubicle 151i, a major portion ofwhich has .been broken away in order to view the assembly 10i) and whichis .further provided with a door 151 which is hinged to open by hingeassemblies 152 and 153. The operating handle (not shown) isappropriately mounted Vto the cover member 151 in a position so as tobesubstantially in alignment with the operating lever 130 such that theoperating lever 131i and the .rotary operating handle (not shown) arereadily and simply brought into engagev, ment .upon closure of cover 151which engagement is greatly facilitated by the tapered portionr139 ofhead 138 and the tapered opening 146 of arm 145. i' It should be notedthat the motion translation assembly 11N) of FIGURE 1 is not 'limited touse in a `cubicle of predetermined depth but may be employed in cubiclesof' varying depths simply by providing suitable extensions from ftheends of arms 135 and 145 wherein such extensions projectY downwardly'away Strom the arm portions Yot operating lever, 13d, so `as to enablecooperation between the driving pin 136, `and elongated slot 123, .andbetween the elongated rib 134 and =openingr124125 of mounting plate 102.The advantages of connecting the operating lever 131) to the operatinghandle assembly (not shown) at two ,separa-te points, namely, at thetapered head 138 and tapered opening 14d, substantially di-V minishesthe forcesV needed, and which are applied to the handle (not shown) ofthe operating handle assembly in onder to impart rotation to theoperating lever V11).

The advantages. and the detailed description of the cooperatingrelationships between theoperating lever 131) and the rotary handleassembly (not shown) is set forth in great detail vin the aforementionedcra-pendingv application, entitled .Universal Unitary Handle ForSwitches.`

`The motion translation assembly 100 is #further provided with a shockabsorbing assemblyldtt, comprising FIGURE 3a showvs the motiontranslation assembly 11i@ and the circuit breaker handle member'112,such vthat the positions occupied by these elements denote the fact thatthe circuit breaker handle is in the off position which means that thecooperating contacts (not shown) of circuit breaker 111 are thedisengaged condition. Assuming that the circuit breaker has beenmanually moved to the oli position, the operating lever 131) must thenbe rotated clock-wise direction as shown by arrow 1440 in order to movethe circuit breaker to the On position. When the operating lever 13@ Visrotated the direction shown by arrow 141B, this causes the drive :pin136 to move along an are shown by dash line 261V in the direction shownby arrow 143. Drive Y ing handle 1127in 'the On'p0sition, the operatinglever and operating pin havemoded tothe position shown by dashed lines130f"and 136', as shown in FIGURE 3a.

Assuming that the circuit breaker has moved to the Gif position due tothe operationof an automatic tripping means (notshown) contained withinthe circuit breaker assembly, it is necessary first that the circuitbreaker handle 112 be moved to the Vreset position in order to reset thelatch which cooperates with the automatic trip assembly of the circuitV(not shown). This is effected byrotating operating lever 13th in thedirection shown by arrow 141 so that the operating pin and the operatinglever move to the position shown by the dash lines'136 and 13Grespectively. This causes the circuit breaker.. Y

,operating handle 112 to move to the position shown by y the dash lines112" for producing the reset operation for the. automatic trip means ofthe circuit 'breaker mechanism (not shown).

tionas shown byV dash lines 11?( was previously described.

in the sam-emanner as In. order to provide .a manual opening operation,that is, in order to move the circuit breaker from'the position' shownby dash lines 112.1r to the position shown by solid operating lever 131)rotates in the opposite, or counterclockwise direction, as shown byarrow 1410i FIG- URE 3a.

In operating .the lever in the direction shown by The circuit breakeroperating handle 112 may then be moved to the On posi- 7 arrow 141, itis possible that, either accidentally or deliberately, the operatinglever 130 may be rotated in the counterclockwise direction beyond theposition shown by the dash lines 130". If this occurs, it imposes asevere strain upon the circuit operating handle 112 and also upon theinstantaneous trip mechanism latch assembly (not shown) which mayultimately cause breakage of either or both of these elements. Since itis not always possible to accurately terminate rotation of the operatinglever 130 at the exact position shown by the dash lines 130", the motiontranslation device 100 has been provided with the shock absorberassembly 160 which operates in the following manner:

When the operating lever 130 has moved to the position shown by dashlines 130, circuit breaker handle 112 is unable to move any further inthe direction shown by arrow 142, of FIGURE 3a. The yoke portion l65 ofthe bumper assembly 160 thereby is enabled to absorb this additionalrotational force imparted to operating lever 130 in such a manner thatthe biasing spring 162 yields or compresses an amount suflicient toabsorb the eXtra rotating force imparted to operating lever 130. Thusthe bumper member 161 moves in the direction shown by arrow 143 relativeto the operating plate 120, thereby substantially reducing the forcesimparted to the breaker operating handle 112, so as to prevent any unduestrain upon the circuit breaker handle 112. It should be understood,however, that the spring constant of biasing spring 162 has a magnitudewhich is adapted to cause spring 162 to undergo substantially nocompression or contraction at a time in which circuit breaker 112 ismoved from On position, shown by dash lines 112' to the Off position, asshown by dash lines 112", so that substantially all the rotationalprocesses imparted to operating lever 130 are imparted to the operatingplate 120, which undergoes substantially linear motion. However, oncethe circuit breaker handle occupies the position shown by dash lines112, biasing spring 162 in this position is suficiently yieldable toabsorb any rotational forces imparted to operating lever 130, such thatoperating plate 120 will move as shown by arrow 143, while bumper member161 remains stationary, the spring 162 absorbs any additional rotationalforce. Operating plate 120 will move in a direction shown by arrow 142,causing bumper member 161 to move in a direction shown by arrow 143, sothat operating handle 112 in a position shown by dash lines 112 willremain substantially stationary so as to Y prevent any break of thehandle 112". Bumper member 161 remains stationary whenever handle 112stops moving.

It should further be noted that the motion translation assembly 100 inany position between the reset and On positions may not be disassembledand remains intact (ie, remains in its assembled state) without thenecessity for any additional fastening means whatever. The motiontranslation assembly 100 may be readily disassembled, however, simply byremoving the driving pin 136 from elongated slot 123, enabling theremoval of operating plate 120 from the guiding projections 116 and 118.The operating plate 120 may be removed from the mounting plate 102simply by rotating operating lever 130 to a position, whereby theprojection 134 is in alignment with the opening 124-126 to the montingplate 102, and then simply lifting operating lever 130 up and away fromplate 102. Bumper member 161 may then be removed from operating plate120, simply by sliding bumper memer 161 in the direction shown by arrow18S of FIGURE 3A away from operating plate 120 such that the entiremotion translation apparatus may be readily assembled and disassambled,and as previously mentioned, remains in its fully assembled statewithout the necessity of providing any fastening means whatsoever, suchthat the stationary mounting plate 102, the operating member 130 and theshock absorber assembly 160 provide regular functions and in additionthereto provide the functions 8 of maintaining the motion translationassembly in its fully assembled state once it has been assembled.

The ange 103a of stationary mounting plate 102 is provided with a notch103b, which is so positioned as to permit the mounting of the motiontranslation assembly 100 to the circuit breaker 111 in the positionshown in FIGURE 1 and so as to prevent mounting of the translationassembly 100 upon breaker 111, if the motion translation assembly isrotated away from the position shown in FIGURE l. This greatlyfacilitates mounting of the motion translation assembly to the circuitbreaker.

It can therefore be seen that this invention provides a motiontranslation device for operation of an interior mounted circuit breakerand which requires less of a driving force than present day devices,which provides a novel shock absorbing assembly for preventing any harmto the circuit breaker manual handle and the circuit breaker latchedmechanism and which is further designed to retain all of the operatingelements in the assembled state without the necessity for additionalfastening means.

In the foregoing, the invention has been described only in connectionwith preferred embodiments thereof. Many variations and modifications ofthe principles of the invention within the scope of the descriptionherein are obvious. Accordingly, it is preferred to be bound not by thespecific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive privilege orproperty is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mountedfor reciprocal movement within guide means provided on said mountingmeans; an operating lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means andincluding a depending drive pin; said operating plate having first andsecond elongated slots being aligned transverse to one another; saiddrive pin being disposed within and slidably engaged by said rstelongated slot; said second elongated slot being adapted to receive acircuit breaker manual operating handle; said operating lever having atapered head member and a tapered aperture remote from said tapered headmember for engagement with a driving member to rotate said operatinglever; said operating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to acircuit breaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever.

2. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker monual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mountedfor reciprocal movement within guide means provided on said mountingmeans; an operating lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means andincluding a depending drive pin; said operating plate having first andsecond elongated slots aligned transverse to one another; said drive pinbeing disposed within and slidably engaged by said first elongated slot;said second elongated slot being adapted to receive a circuit breakermanual operating handle; said operating lever having a tapered headmember and a tapered aperture remote from said tapered head member forengagement with a driving member to rotate said operating lever; saidoperating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to a circuitbreaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever; shockabsorbing means slidably mounted to said operating plate for absorbingexcessive operating forces imposed upon the operating lever to preventdamage to the circuit breaker handle.

3. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mountedfor reciprocal movement within guide means provided on said mountingmeans; an operating lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means andincluding a depending drive pin; said operating plate having first andsecond elongated slots being aligned transverse to one another; saiddrive pin being disposed within and slidably engaged by said irstelongated slot; said second elongated slot being adapted to receive acircuit breaker manual operating handle; said operating lever having atapered head member and a tapered aperture remote from said taperedVhead member `for engagement with a driving member to rotate saidoperating-lever; saidvoperating plate being adapted to impart linearmotion to a circuit breaker operating handle upon rotation of saidoperating lever; shock absorbing means slidably mounted to saidoperating plate for absorbing excessive operating vforces imposed uponthe operating lever to prevent damage to the circuit breaker handle;said shock absorbing means comprising a bumper element slidably mountedto said operating plate whereby a portion of said bumper elementprojects into said second elongated slot; biasing means urging saidbumper element towards said second elongated slot.

4. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mountedfor reciprocal movement within guide means provided on said mountingmeans; an operating'lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means andincluding a depending drive pin; said operating plate having lirst andsecond elongated slots being aligned transverse to one another; saiddrive pin being disposed within and slidably engaged by said firstelongated slot; said second elongated slot being adapted to receive acircuit breaker manual operating handle; said operating lever having atapered head member and a tapered aperture remote from said tapered headmember for engagement with a driving member to rotate said operatinglever; said Yoperating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to acircuit breaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever;shock absorbing means slidably mounted to said operating plate forabsorbing excessive operating forces imposed uponV the operating leverto prevent damage to the circuit breaker handle; said shock absorbingmeans comprising a bumper element slidably mounted to said operatingplate whereby a portion of said bumper element projects into said secondelongated slot; biasing means urging said bumper element towards saidsecond elongated slot; said operating lever further comprising aprojecting rib extending towards said mounting means; said mountingmeans having an opening shaped substantially the same as said projectingrib; said opening and said projecting rib cooperating to pivotallycouple said operating lever to said mounting means when said rib andsaid opening are rotated relative to one another so that` theirconigurations are not in alignment.

5. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationsorbing means slidably mounted tovsaid operating plate Vfor absorbing excessive operating forces imposedupon said operating lever further comprising Va projecting rib extendingtowards said mounting means; said mounting means having an openingshaped substantially the same as said projecting rib; said opening andsaid projecting rib cooperating toV pivotally couple saidoperating-lever to said mounting means when said rib and said openingare rotated relative to one another so that their configurations are notin alignment; said mounting means comprising iirst and second slottedprojections for slidably receiving said operating plate; said mountingmeans further having a first side adjacent said operating plate whichcooperates With said operating plate to prevent movement of saidoperating lever in a iirst rotary direction to a position whereby theconfigurations of said projecting rib and said opening are in alignment.

6. A motion translation assembly for Vcircuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mounted4for reciprocal movement within guide means provided on said mountingmeans; an operating lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means andincluding a depending drive pin; said operating plate having iirst andsecond elongated slots being aligned transverse to one another; saiddrive pin being ldisposed within and slidably engaged by said firstelongated slot; said second elongated slot 4being adapted to receive acircuit breaker manual operating handle; said operating lever having atapered head member and a tapered aperture remote from said taperedheadv member for engagement with a drive member to rotate said operatinglever; said operating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to acircuit breaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever;shock absorbing means slidably mounted to said operating plate forabsorbing excessive operating forces imposed upon the operating lever toprevent damage to the circuit breaker handie; said shock absorbing meanscomprising a bumper element slidably mounted to said operating platewhereby a portion of said bumper element projects into said secj ondelongated slot; biasing means urging said bumper element towards saidsecond elongated slot; said operating lever further comprising aprojecting rib extending towards said mounting means; said mountingmeans having an opening shaped substantially the same as said projectingrib; said opening and said projecting rib cooperating to pivotallycouple said operating lever to said mounting means when said rib andsaid opening are rotated t relative to one another' so that theirconfigurations are not ary mounting means being adapted for securementto a 1 circuit breaker casing; an operating plate mounted for reciprocalmovement within guide means provided on said mounting means; anoperating lever pivotally mounted to said mounting means and includinga.l depending drive pin; said operating plate having first and secondelongated slots being aligned tranverse to one another; said drive pinbeing disposed within and slidably engaged by said first elongated slot;said second elongated slot being adapted to receive a circuit breakermanual operating handle; said operatinglever having a tapered headmember and a tapered aperture remote from said tapered head member forengagement with a drive member to rotate saidoperating levergrsaidoperating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to a circuitbreaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever; shockabin alignment; said mounting means comprising first-and second slottedprojections for slidably receiving said operating plate; said mountingmeans further having a first side adjacent said operating plate whichcooperates with said operating plate to prevent movement of saidoperating s lever in a lirst rotary direction to a position whereby thecongurations of said projecting rib and said opening are in alivnment;said biasing spring being adapted to abut said one of said slottedprojections to prevent movement of said operating lever in a seconddirection opposite said first direction to a position whereby theconfigurations of said projection and said opening are in alignment.

7. A motion translation assembly for circuit breaker manual operatinghandles and the like comprising'stationary mounting means being adaptedfor securement to a circuit breaker casing; an operating plate. mountedto said mounting means and guided for reciprocal movement in theV planeof said plate; an operating lever mounted to said mounting means andpivotable about an axis transverse to said plate; said operating leverincluding a drive pin extending parallel to `said axis at a point remotetherefrom; said operating plate having first and second slots therein;said first slot being elongated and having said drive pin slidablydisposed therein; said first slot positioned with its longitudinal axistransverse to the line of movement of said plate; said second slot beingadapted to receive a circuit breaker manual operating handle pivoted onan axis parallel to said longitudinal axis; said operating lever havinga tapered head member and a tapered aperture remote from said taperedhead for engagement with a driving member to rotate said operatinglever; said operating plate being adapted to impart linear motion to acircuit breaker operating handle upon rotation of said operating lever.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 214,028 4/79 Dick74-546 x 373,115 11/87 Whiting 74-582 X 2,123,978 7/38 Wagner. 2,180,50111/39 Blood 74-104x 10 2,646,483 7/53 Platz 74-1o4x BERNARD A. GILHEANY,Primary Examiner.

B. G. DURHAM, Examiner.

1. A MOTION TRANSLATION ASSEMBLY FOR CIRCUIT BREAKER MANUAL OPERATINGHANDLES AND THE LIKE COMPRISING STATIONARY MOUNTING MEANS BEING ADAPTEDFOR SECUREMENT TO A CIRCUIT BREAKER CASING; AN OPERATING PLATE MOUNTEDFOR RECIPROCAL MOVEMENT WITHIN GUIDE MEANS PROVIDED ON SAID MOUNTINGMEANS; AN OPERATING LEVER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED TO SAID MOUNTING MEANS ANDINCLUDING A DEPENDING DRIVE PIN; SAID OPERATING PLATE HAVING FIRST ANDSECOND ELONGATED SLOTS BEING ALIGNED TRANSVERSE TO ONE ANOTHER; SAIDDRIVE PIN BEING DISPOSED WITHIN AND SLIDABLY ENGAGED BY SAID FIRSTELONGATED SLOT; SAID SECOND ELONGATED SLOT BEING ADAPTED TO RECEIVE ACIRCUIT BREAKER MANUAL OPERATING HANDLE; SAID OPERATING LEVER HAVING ATAPERED HEAD MEMBER AND A TAPERED APERTURE REMOTE FROM SAID TAPERED HEADMEMBER FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH A DRIVING MEMBER TO ROTATE SAID OPERATINGLEVER; SAID OPERATING PLATE BEING ADAPTED TO IMPART LINEAR MOTION TO ACIRCUIT BREAKER OPERATING HANDLE UPON ROTATION OF SAID OPERATING LEVER.